Moving mechanism for a power-laid weapon



May 7, 1957 s. A. HENSTROM MOVING MECHANISM FOR A POWER-LAID WEAPON Filed Nov. 18, 1953 INVENTOR STEN AUGUST HEN'STROM ATTORNEY nite 2,791,156 MQVING MEcHANisMron A PQWER-LAID WEAPON Sten August Henstriim, BoforaSweden, assignor to Aktiebolaget Rotors, 'Bofors, Sweden, a corporation of Sweden Application November .18, 1953, Serial No. 392,796

Claims priority, application-Sweden January 24, 1953 4 Claims. ((31.89-41) This invention relates to the moving mechanism for a power-laid weapon, particularly .for a gun carried on an armored vehicle.

Guns of the general type above referred to, are generally mounted on a rotatable, preferably circular platform having a toothed periphery coupled by a transmission including gears and shafts with a drive motor for purpose of traversing the gun. The elevation of the gun is effected by a second transmission coupled with the same motor or another motor and including components rotatably extended through the platform. The drive motor is situated below the platform and each transmission means includes components situated above and below the platform respectively. The laying of the gun is usually effected from a station below the platform, generally within the protection afforded by the armored vehicle. As is apparent, under the contingencies of warfare or for mechanical reasons one or both transmissions may fail in which case one or more gunners have to take up action stations on the platform. Rigging of the gun for elevational control by hand, generally does not present great difficulties as it is simple to detach the respective component of the first transmission from the gun proper or more specifically from the jacketof the gun. However, the traversing of the gun by hand is difficult when the gunners are stationed on the platform.

Accordingly, one of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved moving mechanism for a gun of the general type above referred to, which can rapidly and conveniently be converted from power operation to manual operation or vice versa or both, the elevating and the traversing operation.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved moving mechanism of the general type above referred to, which includes means for detaching the traversing and elevating parts respectively of the moving mechanism of the power drive and to couple the said parts to a manual drive means.

Other and further object-s, features and advantages of the invention will be pointed out hereinafter and set forth in the appended claims forming part of the application.

In the accompanying drawing the single figure shows a now preferred embodiment of the invention by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

The figure shows a perspective view of a gun mounted on a circular rotary platform and equipped with a moving mechanism according to the invention.

Referring now to the figure in detail, the gun comprises a barrel 1 encased in a jacket composedof a tubular part 2 and a rectangular part 3. The gun barrel is pivotally supported by means of pivots 4 journalled in a cradle carrier including uprights 5 and 6. The carrier is fixedly mounted on a rotatable circular platform 7. The periphery of the platform is provided with teeth 8 which are engaged by a gear 9. This gear is secured to one end of a shaft the other end of which mounts a gear 10. This gear is in mesh with a gear 11 on one end of a shaft 12 the other end of which supports a bevel gear 13 in eni atented May 7, 1957 gagement with abevel gear 14 on a shaft 15. This shaft is coupled through a releasable coupling 16 of conventional design with a drive shaft 17 of a variable speed hydraulic gearing 18 dn'ven through gears '19, 20 and 21 by an electric motor 22. This motor is also geared by gears 21, 23 and 2:4 to avariable speed gearing 25 having a drive shaft '26 coupled through a coupling 27 of conventional design to a shaft 28. This shaft mounts on one end a bevel gear .29 in mesh with a bevel gear 30. As can be clearly seen in the figure, the aforedescrlbed components of the transmission means are all disposed below the platform withthe exception of gear 9 which may be substantially flush with'the platform. The drive derived from gearing v25 iseXtended through the platform by means of a hollow shaft 31 rotatably fitted through an opening 32 in the platform. The end of the shaft below the platform supports the aforementioned bevel gear 30 and the upper end of the shaft mounts a bevel gear 33 in engagement with a bevelgear 34 on one end of a shaft 35. The other end of this shaft is connected to one coupling member of 'a coupling 36. The other coupling member of this coupling is secured to one end of a shaft 37 the other end of which supports a gear 38. This gear is coupled through gears '39 and 40 with a shaft 41 which constitutes the output shaft of the drive derived from gearing 25, shaft 26 being the input shaft of this drive. Shaft 41 mounts a gear 42 in mesh with a toothed set; ment 43 securedto the jacket of the gun barrel.

The two transmission means or drives derived from gearings 18 and 25 respectively are interconnected by shafts 46 and 43 coupled by level gears 44, 45 and 49, 50 to shafts 28 and 15 respectively. A coupling 47 is interposedbetweenshafts46 and 48.

As will be noted shafts 46 and 48 are disposed below the platform.

The moving mechanism further comprises two manually operable laying devices. One of these laying devices is connected to shaft 35 by a bevel gear 51 mounted on the shaft and in mesh with a bevel gear 52 on a shaft 53. This shaft is releasably coupled through a coupling 54 with a shaft 55 which supports a hand wheel 56. Similarly, shaft 37 mounts a bevel gear 57 in mesh with a bevel gear 58 supported on a shaft 59. This shaft is releasably coupled through a coupling 60 with a shaft 61 mounting a second hand wheel 62.

The two manual laying means are disposed above the platform.

All the couplings 16, 27, 36, 47, 54 and 60 may be visualized as being of the same design.

The operation of the moving mechanism as heretofore described, is as follows:

Let it be first assumed that the gun is to be powerlaid. For this purpose, couplings 16, 27 and 36 are moved into engagement and couplings 47, 54 and 60 are disengaged. When new motor 22 is started, the rotation of gearing 18 will be transmitted through shaft 17 and the chain of transmission connected therewith to gear 9 there by efiecting traversing of the gun. The rotation of gearing 25 will be transmitted through shaft 26 and the chain of transmission connected therewith to gear 42 thereby effecting elevation-a1 positioning of the gun. The interconnection between the two transmission chains by shafts 46 and 48 remains ineifective, coupling 47 being disengaged, and the hand wheels 56 and 62 remain stationary, their couplings 54 and 60 being also disengaged.

When it is now desired to shift from power drive to laying by hand, couplings 16, 27 and 36 are disengaged and couplings 47, 54 and 60 are moved into engagement. As a result, the power drive is disconnected from the moving mechanism. A rotation of hand wheel 62 will be transmitted through shafts 59 and 37 to gear 42 for purpose of elevating or depressing the gun. Similarly,

a rotation of hand wheel 56 will be transmitted through shafts 53, 35, 31, 28, 46, 48 and to gear 9 thereby effecting a traversing of the gun.

As appears from the previous description, the hand wheels 56 and 62 being situated above the platform together with the components associated with the hand wheels, can be conveniently operated by a layer stationed What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by 4 Letters Patent, is:

1. A moving mechanism for a gun mounted on a rotary platform and having a barrel pivotal about an elevational axis, the said mechanism comprising power drive means stationarily disposed below said platform, first mechanical transmission means disposed below the platform and coupling the power drive means with said rotary platform for rotating the latter thereby traversing the gun, second mechanical transmission means coupling the power drive means with the gun barrel for pivoting the latter thereby elevating and depressing respectively the gun, said second transmission means including components disposed above the platform and components disposed below the platform, third transmission means interconnecting components of the first and second transmission means situated below the platform, first coupling means included in components of the second transmission means situated above the platform, manually operable first and second laying means situated above the platform and each connectable with components of the second transmission means situated above the platform and extending from opposite sides of the first coupling means, second coupling means included in said third transmission means, third coupling means for connecting and disconnecting respectively the first transmission means to and from the power drive means, and fourth coupling means for connecting and disconnecting respectively the second transmission means to and from the power drive means, said third and fourth coupling means being disposed between the power drive means and the points of the first and second transmission means interconnected by the third transmission means whereby engagement of the first coupling means and disengagement of the second coupling means establish a chain of transmission powered by said power drive means for traversing and elevating and depressing respectively the gun and whereby engagement of the second coupling means and disengagement of the first, third and fourth coupling means establish a chain of transmission for traversing and elevating and depressing respectively the gun by actuating said manually operable laying means upon connection of the latter with the second transmission means.

2. A moving mechanism according to claim 1 and further comprising fifth and sixth coupling means interposed in the connections of said first and second manually operable laying means respectively with the said components of the second transmission means above the platform.

3. A moving mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the said rotary platform has a circular toothed periphery,

- the said first transmission means including gears in mesh with said peripheral teeth for effecting rotation of the platform.

4. A moving mechanism according to claim 1, where- 'in said second transmission means include a component respectively.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS French Nov. 19, 1935 Gross Nov. 1, 1949 

